Digi Case Studies IoT Powering A New Way to Light Streets with Bifacial Solar Panels

	IoT Powering A New Way to Light Streets with Bifacial Solar Panels Digi

IoT Powering A New Way to Light Streets with Bifacial Solar Panels

Digi

Technology Category	Networks & Connectivity - Gateways Networks & Connectivity - RF Transceivers
Applicable Industries	Renewable Energy
Applicable Functions	Business Operation
Use Cases	Smart Lighting
Challenge	When James Meringer’s commercial contracting business experienced a rapid increase in solar projects, he also saw an opportunity to extend the benefits of solar by using the bifacial solar panels he’d become familiar with in new ways. Bifacial solar panels enable sunlight from both sides of the panel, making it a more efficient harvest of solar power. Seeing the panel’s power, James and his team set out to use the same technology for street lighting. Until now, solar street lights have served as utilitarian solutions that force designers to choose between form and function. The Mira Bella Energy team has changed that. Read More
About Customer	Mira Bella Energy Read More
Customer Name	Mira Bella Energy Read More
Solution	Mira Bella Energy had a unique panel designed to be mounted to street lights. The bifacial solar panel is mounted vertically, instead of being mounted to the top of the light pole as it is traditionally. Vertically mounting the panel allows allows it to capture both day and evening sunlight. The 5-foot panels look like fins and are designed to be wind-tolerant. Each has a lithium-ion battery stack in that pole for night. The batteries are good for 3,000 charging cycles, or around 8 years of use. This means that lighting can be completely removed from the grid, or a hybrid approach can be used. To make the solution as smart, efficient and scalable as possible, Mira Bella Energy created an intelligent, bifacial solar powered lighting system by putting Internet of Things technology to work. To do this, each street light panel is also equipped with Digi XBee RF modules, a X2/X4 gateway and a connection to Digi Device Cloud. The XBee collects and communicates information from the street light solar panel to the gateway, which sends the information to the cloud where it's accessible via a web dashboard. “Our Santa Cruz solar street light product utilizes the Digi XBee module, a Digi gateway and Digi Device Cloud for control and communication. That’s what enables our product to participate in the Internet of Things,” said Mira Bella Founder James Meringer. “We used Digi products years ago with another company and always knew Digi would be one to watch for communications devices.” Read More Log in to view content
Data Collected	Asset Performance, Battery Charge Level, Energy Production, Lighting, Solar Power Read More Log in to view content
Contents

Technology Category

Networks & Connectivity - Gateways

Networks & Connectivity - RF Transceivers

Applicable Industries

Renewable Energy

Applicable Functions

Business Operation

Use Cases

Smart Lighting

Challenge

When James Meringer’s commercial contracting business experienced a rapid increase in solar projects, he also saw an opportunity to extend the benefits of solar by using the bifacial solar panels he’d become familiar with in new ways. Bifacial solar panels enable sunlight from both sides of the panel, making it a more efficient harvest of solar power. Seeing the panel’s power, James and his team set out to use the same technology for street lighting. Until now, solar street lights have served as utilitarian solutions that force designers to choose between form and function. The Mira Bella Energy team has changed that.

About Customer

Mira Bella Energy

Customer Name

Mira Bella Energy

Solution

Mira Bella Energy had a unique panel designed to be mounted to street lights. The bifacial solar panel is mounted vertically, instead of being mounted to the top of the light pole as it is traditionally. Vertically mounting the panel allows allows it to capture both day and evening sunlight. The 5-foot panels look like fins and are designed to be wind-tolerant. Each has a lithium-ion battery stack in that pole for night. The batteries are good for 3,000 charging cycles, or around 8 years of use. This means that lighting can be completely removed from the grid, or a hybrid approach can be used. To make the solution as smart, efficient and scalable as possible, Mira Bella Energy created an intelligent, bifacial solar powered lighting system by putting Internet of Things technology to work. To do this, each street light panel is also equipped with Digi XBee RF modules, a X2/X4 gateway and a connection to Digi Device Cloud. The XBee collects and communicates information from the street light solar panel to the gateway, which sends the information to the cloud where it's accessible via a web dashboard. “Our Santa Cruz solar street light product utilizes the Digi XBee module, a Digi gateway and Digi Device Cloud for control and communication. That’s what enables our product to participate in the Internet of Things,” said Mira Bella Founder James Meringer. “We used Digi products years ago with another company and always knew Digi would be one to watch for communications devices.”

Data Collected

Asset Performance, Battery Charge Level, Energy Production, Lighting, Solar Power

Impact #1	[Efficiency Improvement - Operation] Ability to utilize motion detection, manage light brightness, monitor the charge of batteries and to have a complete view into what type of solar harvest is being pulled from the panels at any point in time.

Impact #1

[Efficiency Improvement - Operation]
Ability to utilize motion detection, manage light brightness, monitor the charge of batteries and to have a complete view into what type of solar harvest is being pulled from the panels at any point in time.

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Overview

IoT Powering A New Way to Light Streets with Bifacial Solar Panels

Operational Impact